LyondellBasell Swings to $758 Million Profit on Oxyfuels Strength
LyondellBasell swung to a third-quarter profit of $758 million from a loss a year earlier, as the chemicals maker leaned on its oxyfuels business and cost cuts, the company reported Friday.
Net income was $758 million, or $2.32 a diluted share, compared with a loss of $890 million, or $2.77 a share, in the third quarter of 2025, when it booked $1.202 billion of asset write-downs, according to the earnings release filed with an 8-K. Excluding identified items, net income was $828 million, or $2.54 a share, up from $330 million, or $1.01, a year earlier but down from $1.401 billion, or $4.30, in the second quarter.
Sales rose 10.0% from a year earlier to $8.499 billion. EBITDA was $1.420 billion, or $1.512 billion excluding identified items, versus $835 million on that basis a year earlier.
What drove the quarter
CEO Peter Vanacker pointed to "the strength of our oxyfuels business and materially higher Intermediates & Derivatives profitability." He said the company has been optimizing feedstocks, sending products to the most attractive markets and matching operating rates to demand.
LyondellBasell said it improved asset reliability and finished a turnaround at its Clinton, Iowa, plant on time and under budget. It made a planned €500 million debt repayment during the quarter and advanced its Cash Improvement Plan, including cuts to global structural fixed costs.
Houston refinery sale
Separately on Friday, Valero Energy said it agreed to buy LYB Houston Hub Holdings, which owns LyondellBasell's former Houston refinery site, for $320.5 million, subject to adjustments. LyondellBasell stopped operating the refinery in February 2025 and reports its refining business as a discontinued operation. Valero said it expects the deal to close by the end of 2026.
By the numbers
- $758 million: third-quarter net income, versus a $890 million loss a year earlier
- $2.54: EPS excluding identified items
- $8.499 billion: sales, up 10.0%
- $1.512 billion: EBITDA excluding identified items
- €500 million: debt repaid in the quarter
- $320.5 million: price Valero agreed to pay for the Houston refinery business
Sources
- LyondellBasell Form 8-K with third-quarter 2026 earnings release (Exhibit 99.1), filed Oct. 30, 2026 (accession 0001489393-26-000067)
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